Performance Nutrition, Created By Athletes

Brainiac pros took workout and recovery fuel into their own hands by developing these products.

When it comes to nutrition, no one knows how to properly fuel and hydrate before, during and after your workouts better than the pros. And conveniently, handfuls of elite athletes also happen to have science and nutrition backgrounds. Put these brains-plus-brawn busybodies in the kitchen and a host of new nutrition products emerge. Here are just some of the latest products that were created by athletes, for athletes.

Picky Bars

What: As a triathlete, Jesse was looking for a bar that was all-natural yet still had performance benefits that weren’t offered by other “real food” bars. His wife Lauren, who in addition to being a professional runner also has a degree in science and athletic performance from Stanford, helped him create it. Each bar is gluten-free, and contains primarily organic and superfood ingredients.

Run Gum

Created by: Pro runner Nick Symmonds

What: Symmonds also happens to be a biochemist. His brainchild: A performance-boosting gum that provides runners with a caffeine kick without anything else—no calories or sugar. It purports to convey a boost 5 times faster than other caffeinated products.

Ally’s Bar

Created by: Pro cyclist Ally Stacher, a member of Team Specialized-Lululemon, and her cyclist husband John Murphy

What: Ally was known as the team chef. She would make smoothies and juices and energy cookies/bites for her teammates, and they loved them. Eventually they encouraged her to make a healthy, natural bar that tastes good, and she did. The vegan-friendly, all-natural bar is made primarily from sweet potato, dates and quinoa, with nearly all of the ingredients sourced from organic farms.

Giddy Up Bar

Created by: Timothy O’Shea, an elite coach to professional cyclists and cyclocross riders

What: Annoyed with his athletes’ bad eating behaviors, O’Shea started to cook for them. These bars were one of his creations. The quinoa-based bars contain a simple mix of carbs and protein, healthy fats and antioxidants, with ingredients like flax, cashew butter, pumpkin seeds and tart cherries.

Enduro Bites

Created by: Brian Maslach, an endurance athlete

What: Maslach, who has studied exercise science and sport nutrition and was a VP at a major nutritional supplement company, is an endurance athlete at his core. On a search for something that tasted better, didn’t contain any fillers or junk and was still effective at improving performance, he began experimenting with ingredients and kept tweaking until he got it right. His athlete friends in Colorado helped test for him. Each ingredient is selected for a purpose and combined into bite-sized food that’s easy to eat while racing.

Harmony Bar

Created by: Jess Cerra, pro mountain biker and Xterra athlete

What: The Harmony Bar is one item produced by Fit Food by Jess, which Cerra founded in 2009. She prepares fresh, healthy, seasonal food for families and athletes, using wholesome, flavorful, simple food. She also writes a recipe and cooking column bi-monthly for Triathlete magazine.